The Sun and The Rain

I went to Bonnaroo and all I got was a sunburn and a demo of this song.

I started writing this on the plane back in June, then finished writing the initial lyrics and workshopped it at the Writing a Song That Matters retreat in August. I still didn't really know the melody or chords at that point—I figured those out the week after the retreat and recorded this demo.

This was recorded in GarageBand on my favorite guitar, the Fender Vintage Modified Telecaster Thinline, through my fairly new Fender Mustang Micro USB interface. I think this was one of the ones I recorded vocals on using my new Shure Beta 58A mic and MXV2U USB interface. I ran it through Landr after that.

I'm still going by the name Impossible Bookings because I like it, heh.


The Sun and The Rain

Verses Key of C / Choruses Key of D

[VERSE 1]
C F
C F
C F
We were driving late out of Nashville
Am G F G
After canceled flights, rebooked rooms, praying we’d make it to
C G F G
I-24 down in Manchester, Tennessee

C F
Friday rediscovered first principles
Am G F G
No sunscreen, in pain, barbecue, benzocaine
C F Am G
We reinvented the [entire] hierarchy of needs

—

[CHORUS 1]

D A
But we built a porch of our own
Bm G
Our one-pole tent would be a home
D A G Asus A
In a sunny Mars community


D A
Then we saw the first firefly of summer
Bm G
Oh my God, that weekend was a stunner
D A G Asus A
Out there in the hills of Tennessee

D G Bm A G A

—

[VERSE 2]

C [spoken] F
Some guy said, “People keep lying to me—
Am G F G [spoken]
‘It’s a marathon, not a sprint,’ but actually it’s tons of sprints,
C F Am G
With little breaks in between”

Am F
A gal with a fan tapped my arm
Am [spoken] G
She said, “I hope you get everything you want.”
Am G C F
I looked down and I found sunglasses on the ground
C F Am G
Then it finally started to rain [country whoop!]

—

[CHORUS 2]
D A
Then we saw the first lightning of summer
Bm G
Oh my God, that weekend was a stunner
D A G Asus A
Out there in the hills of Tennessee

D A
We took shelter on our porch
Bm G
And welcomed new friends to our home
D A G Asus A
A castle in the sun and the rain

—

[BRIDGE]
G A D G
Then came the test—could we get some rest?
Bm A D G
Or would the storm bring down our canopy?
G A D G
You asked me, “Hey, should we maybe leave?”
Bm A G A
“I don’t want to die in Tennessee”


D G Bm A G A


—

[VERSE 3]
C F
Now next to me you’re sleeping soundly
Am G
This flight feels hot on my sunburnt body
Am G C F
My sweatshirt’s warm, but cool air’s on my face

C G
Your rigging brought us through the storm
Am F
What we built kept us safe and warm
Am G F G
Dear God, universe, I’m really glad we made it to
Am G C F G
Bonnaroo, in the hills of Tennessee

—

[CHORUS 3]
D A
‘Cause there we saw the first firefly of summer
Bm G
Oh my God, that weekend was a stunner
D A G Asus A
Out there in the hills of Tennessee

D A
Y'all left a lei and carpe diem,
Bm G
And we made it through everything
D A G Asus A D
Even all the sun and the rain

• play
• pause
• min volume
• max volume

posted by limeonaire (2 comments total)

Whoa, I like the loping pulse. I tend to feel subconsciously that guitars should be like clockwork, but the guitar is amazing here just doing whatever the vocals need. That's a really good voice, BTW.
posted by ignignokt at 7:06 PM on September 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

Aw thanks! Yeah, I think when I really do it up and record it with full instrumentation, the lope will need to normalize to click a bit. But this was just a demo for now! That aspect really bugged a friend who listened to it, so it's definitely noticeable one way or another right now.
posted by limeonaire at 7:18 AM on September 19, 2023